Sealing device for heat-sealing machines of the thermal impulse type



Nov. e, 1951 ww \\\\\\\A INVENTOR Patented Nov. 6, 1951 SEALING DEVICE FOR HEAT-SEALING MACHINES OF THE THERMAL IMPULSE TYPE Nicholas Langer, New York, N. Y.

Application July 15, 1950, Serial No. 174,074

This invention relates to the art of heatsealing thermoplastic lms, and, more particularly, t0 a novel and improved sealing device or bar for heatsealng machines of the thermal impulse type.

As disclosed in my lPatent 2,460,460, heatsealing machines of the thermal impulse type essentially comprise a pair of pressure members or bars and a reciprocating n1ec..;anism therefor whereby pressure may be applied upon two or more layers of thermoplastic illm to be seatsealed interposed therebetween. Examples of the commercially most important thermoplastic lms are Pliolm (rubber hydrochloride), Vinylite (a copolymer of vinyl chloride and.- vinyl acetate), Polythene (polyethylene), and Saran (vinyledene chloride). A heater element in the form of a thin and narrow strip of a metal ci high specific resistance, such as a suitable nickel-chromium alloy known in the trade as Nichrome, is mounted on the face of at least one of said bars, constituting the operating or sealing surface of the machine. Sealing pulses of electric current may be passed through the said heater element under the control of a switching mechanism, the operation of which is coordinated to that of the reciprocating mechanism of the bars.

During the operation of the machine, operation of the switching mechanism is initiated substantially when the pressure members arrive into their pressure-applying position. A short pulse of current is then passed through the heater element, which, as a result of its low heat capacity, is heated to heatsealing temperature in a small fraction of a second. The heat thus produced is immediately transferred by surface contact to the region of the thermoplastic layers compressed between the bars, causing heatsealing thereof. A short period thereafter, the heat produced by the pulse of current is dissipated and the seal is Cooled and consolidated under pressure whereby a strong and sound seal is obtained.

Heatsealing machines of the thermal impulse type provide important advantages over the commonly used heatsealing machines in which the sealing member is continuously maintained at a constant sealing temperature. Due to the fact that the thermal impulse principle permits the sealed region to cool and to consolidate under pressure, the quality of the seal is greatly iinproved. Also, the thermal impulse principle makes l it possible to readily seal nlms of materials, which 9 Claims. (Cl. 21S-19) cannot be sealed on an industrialscale with sealing members continuously maintained at constant sealing temperatures, such as particularly Polythene and Saran.

Although the heatsealing machines of the thermal impulse type provided excellent results and achieved remarkable commercial success within a short period after their introduction, certain practical difficulties were experienced particularly when applying the principle to high-speed packaging machinery where it may be desirable to provide as many as two or more complete sealing cycles per second. One of these diiiiculties was the building up ci heat in the sealing strip and its associated supporting structure when the sealinU cycles have ioliowed each other in rapid succession. This, under certain conditions, caused the adherence or sticking oi the sealed layers to the heater element or strip alter the sealing operation since the time between adjoining sealing cycles was too short to permit complete dissipation or the sealing heat and full consolidation of the seal. This difficulty interfered with the desired high operating speeds, which to obtain is the present trend in the entire packaging industry.

I have now discovered that the outstanding problem may be solved in a remarkably simple manner.

It is an object of the present invention to improve heatsealing machines or" the thermal impulse type.

lt is another object of the present invention to provide an improved heatsealing machine of the thermal impulse type in which provision is made for eicient withdrawal of the residual heat present in the seal and the sealing bar and its associated structure after each sealing operation or cycle.

It is also within the contemplation of the invention to provide a novel andA improved sealing device or bar for heatsealing machines of the thermal impulse type which is capable o1" being operated equally well at low and at extremely high speeds in the complete absence of sticking and which permits the production of perfect seals at practically any commercially required speed.

The invention also contemplates a novel heatsealing bar oi the thermal impulse typeV comprising means for the positive and substantially complete removal of the residual heat after each sealing cycle which is simple in structure, is characterized by a long useful life and which may be readily manufactured and sold on a practical and commercial scale at a low cost.

An additional object contemplated by the present invention is the provision of a novel and improved method or" heatsealing thermoplastic films of temperature expansion).

with a heretofore unobtainable efficiency and at a high rate of speed.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a side elevational View, somewhat fragmentary in character and having parts in section. of a preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 illustrates a modied heater element suitable for the purposes of the invention.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, reference numeral II] generally denotes a sealing device embodying the invention which essentially comprises a metal base or bar II formed of metal of high heat conductivity, such as copper, brass or aluminum. It is preferred to use a metal to which a soldered or brazed ,joint can be readily made. A channel or duct I2 may ve provided in the bar, extending along its length for passing a coolant fluid, for example water, therethrough.

Upon the top surface of bar II, there is provided a first layer I3 of heat-resistant insulating material, such as Telion (polymerized tetraluoroethylene), Kel-F (polymerized tetraiiuoro-chloroethylene), glass fiber cloth impregnated with silicone resin, and the like. A thin and narrow heater strip I4 of metal or alloy of high specic vresistivity is mounted or tensioned on the first insulating layer I3 and constitutes a heater element of low heat capacity for the bar. Examples of suitable high-resistivity materials for the heater strip I4 are Nichrome (a nickel base alloy containing l1-22% chromium and smaller amounts of silicon and manganese), Inconel (a nickel base heatand oxidation-resistant alloy with approximately 13% chromium, 6% iron,

'small amounts of manganese, silicon and copper, and Nilvar (a high-nickel iron alloy with about 35% of nickel showing extremely low coecient A second layer I5 of heat-resistant insulating material is placed on top of the heater strip I4. This second layer of insulation I5 may be formed of the same material as that of the first layer of insulation I3. It will be noted that the two layers of insulation I3 and I5 have approximately the same width as that of the top surface of base or bar II while the heater strip I4, which is centrally located between the two insulating layers, is of considerably lesser width, such as 1/3 or 1A; of the width of the said layers. Furthermore, the lower insulating layer I3 is of substantial thickness as compared to the thickness of the upper insulating layer I 5 which is made as thin as possible and is compatible with the requirements of electrical insulation to be provided between the underlying heater strip or element I4 and the overlying sealing strip IB. As a result, an intimate heat exchange relation will be established between the heater strip I4 and the sealing strip I6 through the minute thickness of the interposed insulating layer I5.

Sealing strip I6 is formed of metal of relatively low heat conductivity, such as of the same metals or alloys of which the heater strip I4 is made, since Nichrome, Inconel or Nilvar, in addition to having low electrical conductivity, also possess the characteristic of relatively low heat conductivity. The sealing strip is made considerably wider than the width of bar II and its lateral marginal portions are bent over the top edges of the bar and are pressed against the sides thereof, resulting in an inverted U-shaped cross section. The edges of the sealing strip are secured to the bar in any suitable manner, for example by brazing or soft soldering, as indicated at I?. The same result may be obtained by means of metal clamping strips I8 pressed against the side faces of the bar by screws I9. The top surface 2e of sealing strip I6 constitutes the operating or sealing face of the bar.

Upon assembling the sealing device, sealing strip I6 is tensioned around the top face of bar II and fixes the underlying members I3, Id and I5 in their properly assembled relative position. The two ends 2l and 22 of the heater strip I, are extended beyond the ends of bar or base II so that conductors or leads 23 and 24 may be respectively secured thereto. Of course, more elaborate termina1 arrangements may be resorted to, if desired. Nipples 25 and 26 are inserted into the ends of coolant channel I2 whereby the said channel may be readily connected into a flow of coolant fluid by means of rubber tubing.

The sealing device or bar I is mounted for cooperation with a conventional pressure bar 2?, the lower face of which is preferably provided with a layer or facing 28 of elastic material, for example silicone rubber. The sealing and pressure bars are arranged for relative reciprocation by means of any suitable conventional manuallyoperable or motor-driven mechanism.

From the foregoing description, the operation of the sealing device of the invention will be readily understood by those skilled in the art. When it is desired to make a seal, layers 29 and 3d of thermoplastic film are interposed between sealing bar II and pressure bar 2 and the bars are displaced toward one another to apply pressure upon the regions of the layers to be heatsealed. A short pulse of sealing current of suitable intensity is then passed through heater strip I4 by connecting its ends 2i, 22 to a source of electric current (not shown) through lead wires 23 and 24. This pulse of current will heat up the said strip to a high temperature practically instantaneously. As the lower insulating layer I3 is considerably heavier than the upper insulating layer I5, most of the heat generated in the heater strip I4 will travel upwardly and by conduction through the minute thickness of insulating layer I5 will rapidly heat up a center portion of sealing strip I6 in a region roughly corresponding to the width of the underlying heater strip I4 and denoted by reference numeral 3i in Fig. 2. Heatsealing of the compressed layers 29, 3U of the thermoplastic lm will now occur in the heated region 3i of the sealing face 2li.

A short period thereafter, the sealing heat is dissipated and the seal formed is allowed to cool and to consolidate while the pressure upon the seal is still maintained. Finally, the pressure is released and the sealed layers are withdrawn.

Any residual heat remaining in sealing strip I6 is rapidly conducted away into bar II formed of metal of high heat conductivity. This is due to the fact that the path from the heated portion 3l of the sealing face 20 to the body of bar II is quite short, as this will be readily observed in Fig. 1. Since the heat capacity of bar II is very substantial and that of heater strip is very small, the heat withdrawn into the bar will raise its temperature to such moderate extent as will be readily Vdissipated by radiation or convection. Thus, the structure described is entirely satisfactory for heatsealing machines wherein no extreme speeds of operation are required. However, the rapidity of heat withdrawal from the sealed region of iilm and from the sealing face of the bar may be further accelerated to any practically necessary extent by passing water, air or some other suitable coolant uid through channel I2 oi bar II. This is accomplished, for example, by introducing the coolant uid into channel I2 through inlet nipple 25 and discharging such iiuid through outlet nipple 26. As an alternative, a plurality of cooling plates or` ribs may be mounted on or may be integrally formed with bar i i and a blast of air may be directed against the same.

it is to be observed that the sealing device or bar of the invention provides various important advantages. The most important of these adn vantages may be listed as follows:

l. While the sealing strip I6, particularly its operative face 2li is in intimate heat exchange relation with the heater strip I4 through the minute thickness ci the interposed insulating layer l5, it is electrically disconnected therefrom by the same layer. Therefore, no current will new through the sealing strip itself and the current consumption of the entire unit is relatively low.

2. The center region 3l of sealing strip I5 is intensely and intermittently heated by the underlying heater strip Id during each heating or sealing cycle while its marginal regions are eiliciently and continuously cooled by having the lateral edges thereof soldered, braced, clamped or otherwise secured to corresponding portions of bar l I. Thus, heating or sealing pressure is applied to the thermoplastic layers in the center of their compressed region while cooling pressure is applied to said layers in the remainder oi such region. It will be further noted that the said heated and cooled areas in the sealing face are deiined in one and the same perfectly smooth and plane surface E@ so that no extrusion er cutting of the sealed layers can occur in the boundary lines dening the said heated and cooled areas. This, of course, is due to the relatively low heat conductivity of the material of the sealing stri which permits maintaining a sharp temperature gradient between different transverse regions thereof.

3. In general, the width of the seal produced roughly corresponds to the width of the heater strip it which is preferably about 1/3 or 1/4 of the width or the sealing face I3. However', the width of the seal may be adjusted and increased by increasing the intensity or the duration of the sealing pulse of electric current. rihis will be readily understood if it is considered that the sealing heat produced in heater strip I4 will first heat up the directly overlying portion 3i of sealing face all. However, in case the sealing pulse of current is sufficiently long or intense, the heat will travel in the plane of the sealing face in both transverse directions a short distance and this will result in widening of sealing region SI.

e. As the sealing face of the unit is completely smooth and as there is no extrusion of the thermoplastic possible during the sealing operation, sticking of the sealed nlm to the sealing face is practically completely absent.

5. Removal oi the residual heat from the sealing face oi the unit and from the sealed regions oi the thermoplastic layers is rapid and extremely elective. Therefore, the time required for a complete heating and cooling cycle may be considerably reduced.

6. The sealing bar is extremely rugged both mechanically and electrically since the sealing strip I6 is anchored along the full length of both of its longitudinal edges and is mechanically supported by the underlying generally non-compressible structural elements. On the other hand, the mechanically weak heater strip it is fully protected against injury by the sealing strip I6 which completely envelops the same. Thus, the useful life of the sealing device is quite long.

7. The sealing device or bar oi the invention is very simple in structure and may be readily manuiactured on a practical and industrial scale in any desired length or shape at a low cost.

In order that those skilled in the art may have a better understanding of the invention, the following illustrative example may be given.

In a practical sealing device or bar embodying the invention, bar or base il was formed of a brass rod or" oblong cross section, having a width of 0.5 and a height ci The length of the bar was 12, but this dimension, or" course, is determined by the length of the desired seal. Insulating layer i3 was formed of a strip of glass ber fabric impregnated with silicone resin, having a width oi 0.5 and a thickness of 0:01". Heater strip lil was formed or" a Nilvar strip, 0.1 wide and 0.032 thick. insulating layer I5 was formed of a strip of glass ber fabric impregnated with silicone resin, having a width oi 0.5 and a thickness oi 0.093. As the function of this layer is to provide intimate heat exchange relation between the underlying heater strip id and the overlying sealing strip iii, while electrically insulating the two elements from each other, its thickness may b-e considerably less than 0.063. Sealing strip le was for ned of a Nilvar strip having a width of 1.5 before bending it into U-shape and a thickness oi' 6.602.

The advantage of using Nilvar for both the heater and the sealing strips resides in the extremely low coeicient of linear heat expansion of this material.

Fig. 3 illustrates a modified heater element which may be substituted for heater element or strip lli. This inodied heater element comprises a narrow strip 3i. of heat-resistant insulating material, such as mica, glass-fiber fabric impregnated with silicone resin, asbestos, or the like. Windings of wire ci high specific resistivity, such as Nichronie, are wound around strip 32 throughout the length thereof, the ends of said wire being soldered cr otherwise secured to rivets or eyelets and 2 rovided at the two ends or the strip. Lead wiles and 3? are attached to members Eid and respectively, and serve for connecting the heater element to source or electric current.

The advantage of the modified heater element just described resides in the fact by proper selection or the resistance wire da ."-eter and or the specific resistivity, the element may be readily adapted to the voltage of the source of current used so that, for example, the heater element may be connected directly or through a small rheostat to the direct current or alternating current power line. ln contrast to this, the resistance of the heater strip if! is generally quite low so that it is in many cases necessary to energize such strip through a step-down transformer from the alternating current power line. The modified heater element shown in Fig. 3 makes it possible to eliminate the transformer which results in .considerable saving.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in connection with a few preferred embodiments thereof, variations and modifications may be resorted to by those skilled in the art without departing from the principles of the invention. I consider all of these variations and modifications to beV within the true spirit and scope of the present invention, as disclosed in the foregoing description and deiined by the ap` perided claims.

I claim:

l. A sealing member for heatsealing machines comprising, in combination, a metal base, a first metal layer through which sealing pulses of current may be passed insu'iatedly mounted on said base, a layer o insulation on said first metal layer, and a second metal layer of a Width greater than that of said rst metal layer superimposed on said layer of insulation, said second metal layer having its center portion in intimate heat exchange relation with said first metal layer but being electrically disconnected therefrom and having its marginal portions secured to said base.

2. A sealing member for heatsealing machines comprising, in combination, a metal base, a rst layer of insulation on said base, a first metal layer through which sealing pulses of current may be passed on said layer of insulation, a second layer of insulation on said metal layer, and a second metal layer of a Width greater than that of said first metal layer superimposed on said second layer of insulation, said second metal layer having its center region in intimate heat exchange relation with said first metal layer but being electrically disconnected therefrom and having its marginal regions directly secured to said base for rapid conduction of residual heat from said second metal layer into said base.

3. A sealing device for heatsealing machines of the thermal impulse type comprising, in combination, a metal bar, an elongated heater elew ment insulatedly mounted on said bar, and an elongated sealing element formed of sheet metal of a Width greater than that of said heater element insulatedly superimposed upon said heater element and constituting the operative face of the device, said sealing element having its longitudinal center region in intimate heat exchange relation with said heater element in the absence of an electrical connection therebetween for rapidly heating such region to heatsealing temperature upon the passage of a pulse of current through said heater element and having its longitudinal marginal regions directly secured to said metal bar to provide a short heat conduction path Jfor rapid conduction of residual heat from said sealing element into said bar.

e. A sealing device for heatsealing machines of the thermal impulse type comprising, in combination, a bar formed of metal of high heat conductivity, an elongated heater element insulatedly mounted on said bar, and an elongated sealing element formed of sheet metal of low heat conductivity and having a Width greater than that of said heater element insulatedly superimposed upon said heater element and constituting the operative face or the device, said sealing element having its longitudinal center region in intimate heat exchange relation with said heater element but being electrically disconnected thereirom :for rapidly heating such region to heatsealing temperature upon the passage of a pulse of current through said heater element and said sealing element having its longitudinal marginal regions secured to said bar in directly contactingrelation therewith to pro- 8, vide a short path for rapid conduction of residual heat from said sealing element into said bar.

5. A sealing device for heatsealing machines comprising, in combination, a base formed of metal of high heat conductivity, a first layer of insulation on said base, a iirst metal layer through which sealing pulses of current may be passed on said layer of insulation, a, second layer of insulation on said metal layer, a second metal layer formed of metal of low heat conductivity and of a width greater than that of said first metal layer superimposed on said second layer of insulation, said second layer of insulation being suiiiciently thin to maintain the center region of said second metal layer in intimate heat exchange relation with but electrically disconnected from said first metal layer, and means for securing the lateral marginal regions of said second metal layer in directmetallic contact with said base for rapid conduction of residual heat from said metal layer into said base.

6. A sealing device for heatsealng machines comprising, in combination, a base formed of metal of high heat conductivity, a rst layer of insulation on said base, a heater strip through which seaiing pulses of current may be passed on said layer oi insulation, a second layer of insulation on said heater strip, a sealing strip formed of metal of lovv heat conductivity and of a width greater than that of said heater strip superimposed on said second layer of insulation, said second layer oi insulation being suiciently thin to maintain the center region of said sealing strip in intimate heat exchange relation with but electrically disconnected from said heater strip, and means for securing the lateral marginal regions of said sealing strip in direct metallic contact With said base for rapid conduction of residual heat from said metal layer into said base, said base having a heat. 'capacity which is substantial as compared to the heat capacity of said heater strip and of said sealing strip.

7. A sealing device for heatsealing machines comprising, in combination, a metal base, a heater element in the form of a strip through which sealing pulses o current may be passed insulatedly mounted on said base, a layer of insulation on said heater element, a sealing strip of sheet metal having a width greater than that of said heater element superimposed on said layer of insulation, said sealing strip having its center portion in intimate heat exchange relation with said heater element but being electrically disconnected therefrom and having its marginal portions conductively secured to said base for rapid conduction of residual heat into said base, and,

means for passing a coolant iiuid in heat exchange relation with said base.

8. A sealing device for heatsealing machines comprising, in combination, a base formed of metal oi high heat conductivity, an elongated generally flat heater element mounted on said base and insulated therefrom, a sealing strip of sheet metal of relatively low heat conductivity superimposed on said heater element and insulated therefrom, said sealing strip having its center portion in intimate heat exchange relation With said heater element and having its marginal portions directly and conductively secured to said base for rapid conduction of residuai heat into said base, a channel extending through said base, and means for passing a coolant fluid through said channel for maintaining said base at a constant low temperature.

9. A sealing device for heat sealing machines of the thermal impulse type comprising, in combination, a metal base, a heater element including windings of wire Wound on a strip of heat-resistant insulating material on said base, and a sealing strip of sheet metal having a Width greater 5 than said heater element superimposed on said element, said element being electrically insulated from said base and from said sealing strip, the center portion of said sealing strip being in intimate heat exchange relation with said heater element and the lateral marginal portions of said strip being directly and conductively secured to said base for rapid removal of residual heat from said strip into said base.

NICHOLAS LANGER. 15 2,542,901

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,238,342 Riehl Apr. 15, 1941 2,289,618 Young July 14, 1942 2,452,126 Irvin Oct. 26, 1948 2,460,460 Langer Feb. 1, 1949 2,465,310 Irwin, Jr Mar. 22, 1949 2,473,236 Barlow June 14, 1949 2,509,439 Langer May 30, 1950 Chaffee Feb. 20, 1951 

